Saturday, April 9, 2022

When It (KGO) Mattered --415 Media Saturday Evening Post

YOU'RE DARN RIGHT I'M CRITICAL.

Because at one time, the call letters meant something. Something more than a mere radio station. A lot more. KGO was a cultural institution. A way of life almost. The hosts were a part of Bay Area life on and off the radio. They didn't necessarily come from the area but their impact was felt every day. Political, social and as much a part of the region, a significant buzz that seemed never-ending.

Yeah, I care.

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15 comments:

  1. AnonymousApril 9, 2022 at 3:32 PM

    Hate to sound like a broken record but this is what happens when Terrestrial & Print aren't the dominant media anymore. When it was, the talent of KGO Newstalk 810 called the shots in how much they were to get paid. ABC/Disney wanted nothing of that. I worked at KGO during the time of Disney buying ABC from Cap Cities and I remember hearing a lot of the employees saying this is the beginning of the end. And this was before the Internet was, well, the Internet that we know today. I'm sure there's going to be arguments that disagree with me, but what it comes down to is that anyone with a smartphone or a $200 Podcast setup with a Computer can essentially do something that is 1/10 of the product that we used to listen to when KGO "meant something." And the bean counters of Disney, Universal, Fox and CBS all know this. So why pay the big bucks to the talent that can deliver when it "meant something," when they can pay 1/10 of that to an inexperienced person. And don't get me started on the cancel culture folks that will put the hurt on these bean counters when the talent says something controversial. When you play it safe? You're about as boring as figuring out what shade of grey you want to paint for your bathroom.

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    1. AnonymousApril 9, 2022 at 7:57 PM

      I worked there 23 years, I was there for Cap Cities & Disney.
      These were good companies, great benefits etc....Then Came Citadel They were NOT GREAT BUT NOT AS BAD Cumulus which is the WORST Company in Broadcasting. I was there for ALL 4 of them. Unfortunately CUMULUS is NOW THE NORM...

      Delete
    2. AnonymousApril 9, 2022 at 11:46 PM

      I paint mine fifty.

      Delete
    3. AnonymousApril 10, 2022 at 11:27 PM

      Listen to satellite radio ANY thing you want and genre and time

      Delete
  2. AnonymousApril 9, 2022 at 4:30 PM

    KGO was like an airwave education for me. I learned so much from the left, right and in the middle. Listeners could voice their opinions and you could agree or disagree. KGO is kind of like Playland At The Beach now, it's not there anymore.

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    1. AnonymousApril 9, 2022 at 6:59 PM

      Unless you disagreed with Bill Wattenburg, in which case you were insulted and called an ignorant bunhole.

      Delete
    2. AnonymousApril 10, 2022 at 8:54 AM

      I did some of my finest "trolling" calling Dr.Bill...

      He was an easy mark.

      Delete
  3. LarryApril 9, 2022 at 5:01 PM

    Kgo Royalty especially Jazz Beau, Thanks much Rich

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  4. El LoboApril 9, 2022 at 8:47 PM

    Oh man those were great days. I came of age in the late 90’s listening to Blowenstein at his peak and the other great hosts of the day. It was literally appointment radio 24/7. I even would fall asleep with the radio on KGO and wake up in the middle of the night to catch Ray Taliafero ranting and raving. The line up was so good that the “weak links” were folks like Karel and Shawn Nix. Thanks Rich for reminding us of those times.

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  5. AnonymousApril 9, 2022 at 9:47 PM

    A little off subject here Rich. Did you catch London Breed thinking the crowd at opening day love her? She was sitting with Barry (much smaller head now) Bonds. When they introduced Bonds to cheers and boo's. The queen of SF decide she needed to stand up and wave to the crowd. She is far too full of herself

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  6. AnonymooseApril 9, 2022 at 10:01 PM

    Who's that cute chick on the far let?

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  7. AnonymousApril 9, 2022 at 11:25 PM

    Awesome publicity photos! I remember when KGO was giving them out. L-R, top row: Sonny Buxton, Al Collins, Ronn Owens, and Gregg Jordan.
    L-R, bottom row: Jim Eason, Art Finley, Bob Trebor, and Owen Spann.

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  8. unknown stuntmanApril 10, 2022 at 1:41 AM

    now the airwaves are polluted with people like doug andrews, greg o donnell, steve moskovitz, david hollander, john handery, joe cordell,various personalites all of exreme boringness and exceedingly uninteresting "informericals" taped get rich/real estate. divorce attorney, hotelier because kgo has no money and has to take advertising from these shumucks every day..

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  9. LarryApril 10, 2022 at 8:03 AM

    Rich, Maybe you know what happened to John Rothman, gone
    Thursday and Friday what's up ?

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    1. AnonymousApril 10, 2022 at 1:52 PM

      Rothmann will never leave kgo. He loves kgo. One gets the feeling he'd work there for free.

      Delete

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